Thread: Question on consistency of bevel across the razor.

ShavingSnob - That's not a picture of my razor, just a random picture online to show what I'm referring to as the "bevel" when I look through the jeweler's glass. And yes, I'm referring to exactly the area you pointed out.

onimaru55- Again, that's not a pic of my razor. I was just posting it to be sure I wasn't mistaken on what I was calling a bevel. My razor looks like the pic on 1 side, but on the other the bevel region seems to disappear in the middle 3rd or so of the blade.

JTmke - I shaved with it and it was a decent shave, but seemed to pull a bit more when going against the grain than my other razors. I found that I was having to use more/wetter soap to go against the grain. Not sure if this means anything.

There are two things that affect the shape of the bevel - one is a distorted spine and the other is the accuracy of the grind - blade geometry i.e. the spine width to blade width and the extent of hollow grinding affect the bevel width.

If a razor has a distorted spine you will tend to get different bevel shapes either side - one side may be wider at the ends because the middle of the blade is not touching the hone as much - the other side will display the opposite. An experienced honer can overcome this to an extend by using a different honing action and maybe tape.

The fact that your razor has a straight bevel on one side suggests that the spine is also straight - so why would you get a wavy bevel the other side? The answer could be that the accuracy of grinding is not so good on that side - if there is more metal in some areas this will produce a wider bevel so the fact that your bevel gets very thin in the middle suggests that it was ground a little closer than the ends.

When you look at bevels under magnification, very few are perfectly uniform but it doesn't affect performance so long at the bevel is set properly.

UKrob - thanks for the info. Like I was saying in the beginning, I've only just started examining my razors under the glass because I'm wanting to learn to hone. I'm still learning about what it is I'm actually looking for.

It would be nice if all bevels set in perfectly parallel lines. They don't. Especially when magnified 40x to 60x. Honing is about getting the razor shave ready. Shave testing is the only true measure needed.

If you are learning on other razors, have you tried drawing a line with a marker on the edge? You can see what comes off after a few laps

JTmke - I'm not honing yet. Was just checking out the new razors I've bought to see what the edges look like so that I have a better idea of what it's "supposed to look like" when I do start honing. I'm also watching the edges after I strop to make sure I don't see any abnormalities from improper stropping.

Ideally a bevel should be the same width along the entire blade length and be matched by a bevel on the other side of the blade. Due to manufacturing inconsistencies you can get, more times than you would think, bevels that vary in width, look wavy, across the length of the blade and the other side of the blade may have a bevel that looks completely different too. Looks aside these blades can have a shave ready edge. Lord knows I have enough blades with non uniform bevels that are still shave ready and work well. So long as the two bevels meet all along the edge, meaning set, you will get a good shaving edge. It is not necessarily the look of the bevel to keep in mind, so long as it is smooth, it is whether they meet at the edge.

Bob

If what you're suggesting is that the bevel is the very edge (shiny light streak), it's not. As BobH and others have better tried to explain, the bevel is the "slanted" bevel (hence the word) between the lines on Shavingsnobs photo enhancement.

Originally Posted by MajorEthanolic

So I just received my 3rd razor from SRD. Because I've been wanting to learn to hone, I've been examining each razor using a jeweler's loop to see what it's "supposed" to look like before I start stropping (to make sure I'm not screwing anything up). On this one I just got, on one side the bevel is very obvious and consistent across the razor, however, on the other side, the bevel seems to disappear in the middle of the blade. Very persistent on the ends, but I can hardly see the bevel in the middle. Pic is to show what I'm referring to as the "bevel" - the shiny part at the top.

Attachment 173683

I think the OP knows what a bevel is. From his response, the picture is ebing used to illustrate his knowledge and not a picture of his actual blade.

OP: I have had the same issue when honing some of my vintage blades. I believe it is a geometry issue (spine width ratio). If it test shaves alright you should be good to go.